


Overgrown

by Aki_Saiko (saikowrites)



Series: Writober 2019 [14]
Category: Persona 5
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, F/M, Inktober 2019, Introspection, Loss, One-Sided Attraction, Overgrown, Sorry Haru blame the writober not me, Spoilers until 20th november, Writober 2019
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-14
Updated: 2019-10-14
Packaged: 2020-12-16 09:34:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,004
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21034109
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saikowrites/pseuds/Aki_Saiko
Summary: A garden rooftop out of control, pouring rain on a winter day, and Haru Okumura left alone dealing with infesting weeds and feelings of loss and unspoken love.WRITOBER 2019 | Day 14: Overgrown | Based on the official Inktober 2019 prompt list.





	Overgrown

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, today's dose of P5 angst is offered by me, onesided ShuHaru and some really sad [Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nb7Qs11aCIQ) music.  
I'm (not) sorry.

The emergency door leading to the school rooftop creaks and the sound blends with the frantic touch of the pouring rain outside. Haru lets it close behind her and takes a moment to breathe deeply. Heavy, humid air fills her lungs and the smell of rain tickles her nostrils. Before her, disused desks piled up along with old chairs and the small garden that she and Akira have been growing.

She opens the umbrella and advances by some steps but stands still again, raindrops fill her ears with tumbling on the cover. The sun tomatoes plants rise up from the soil in their vase, their leaves unorganised and wild. Dark red fruits are scattered between stems, some of them could still be considered edible, but for the most part, they are already food for the microorganisms that inhabit the compost. Inside the other vase, moon carrot leaves pop out from the ground, but they’re soaked in rainwater that nobody dragged properly; they resemble some small rice field more than a carrot cultivation. Weeds have filled the gaps between each plant and abusively conquered up space in the vases. The little coffee sprouts in the smaller recipients are no better: pieces of the outer layer of soil float in water and some invasive plant looms over the seedlings.

Haru’s fists clench tighter to the handle. _It could be worse_, she says to herself, _the plants haven’t died, and the soil can still be balanced with the right chemistry and enough time._ She crouches down near the two larger vases and muddy water stains her uniform skirt as it brushes against the floor. Haru holds the umbrella between her shoulder and her neck, rolls up the sleeves of her pink turtleneck sweater and stretches a hand towards the soggy soil. She should have worn her school sports outfit. Fingers bury inside and feel the consistency, repeat the operation with the other vase. The situation is worse on the moonlight carrots’ side, she will have to work extra hard to drain all the water that has accumulated after weeks of neglect.

Her mind lingers on the thought of Akira helping her with that secret garden. All the Thieves had been beyond nice in assisting her during the assembly, but only Akira kept stopping by to chat with her from time to time and lent her a hand with pH correction and weeds eradication. They talked about her life in a way she wasn’t used to, he made his best efforts at being honest but didn’t rush things too much, letting Haru come to her own conclusions. She used to dig her nails and fingers into gardening, she vented out her fears regarding company management and asked for advice. She dedicated herself to nurture and harvest bizarre vegetables that in some inexplicable way had revealed to be useful in the Metaverse.

And Akira had always been by her side, staining his uniform for a bunch of tomatoes, giving coffee tips when she didn’t feel ready to ask Sojiro directly, helping her with the math and chemistry in an insane attempt to speed up the growing process. Haru’s eyes glowed and her breath trembled the first time they succeeded in reducing the amount of days necessary to harvest the tomatoes. She had wanted to scream, her body thrilled with the urgency to stand up and hug him right away. She bowed at him politely instead and thanked him for all the hard work. The way he pulled at locks of his fringe, twisted them between slender fingers and looked away as if it was nothing, it burned inside her heart, left a mark that still won’t go away.

Haru caresses a tomato leaf, traces the jagged border with gracious fingertips, indulges on the stem and pushes it aside a little. Some leaves present holes, some others have brown tips due to the excess water, and new sprouts have already withered. Her eyes fill with tears and she do nothing to hold them back. She keeps touching the plants that she and Akira had worked on with such dedication, and warmth wets her cheeks. Beside him, she was safe, she was brave, she could see through her problems and come back home after school without the whole, usual burden weighing on her shoulders. He allowed her to be more open about her true feelings towards life, dreams, goals; allowed her to better understands what love meant to her and why it didn’t have the face of her abusive fiancé. Love, to Haru, had come to mean Akira’s presence by her side, his gentle words on her personal matters, his polite way of caring about her and their little garden on the rooftop.

Haru swallows hard but keeps her gaze on the plants. Akira had asked her if they would be able to harvest some vegetables before the final battle against Sae’ shadow. “Of course,” she had said with a large smile, “they will be ready by November 17th for sure!”

On November 17th, Akira had called an urgent meeting for Mementos. They had struggled with the last rooms of Sae’s Casino; it was better for them to get all the training they could and complete what should have been their last few requests as Phantom Thieves. Haru seated in Leblanc’s attic and nodded with conviction, her mind put aside the thought of their vegetables as there were more important matters to be dealt with.

Haru’s hand draws away from the plants, the umbrella falls from her grip into her neck and hits the floor, stains her white flowered tights as well as her lacquered shoes. Rains showers her hair and clothes and she could hardly care less.

They agreed to harvest moonlight carrots and sun tomatoes on November 17th, just before their plan to escape Akechi’s betrayal and serve him right.

It’s December 13th and Haru is left alone on her secret rooftop garden, Akira shot by friendly fire in a far too real interrogation room.

**Author's Note:**

> I went full 'canon divergence' but. Akira actually being shot is like a canon bad ending for the game? IDK
> 
> Previous work in the collection: Life is Strange / Before the Storm - AmberPrice - Ash  
Next one in the collection will be: Love Live - NozoEli


End file.
